The present invention pertains to an attachment to a crop harvester such as a tomato harvester and, more particularly, to a spreader attachment adjustably carried at a rearward top end portion of an existing chain belt conveyor assembly normally carried on the front end of the main body portion of the harvester. A shear means is disposed centrally of the lower forward end of the conveyor to cut the vines from their root systems, the vines are then fed onto the conveyor for transport thereup into an interior chamber of the harvester where the tomatoes are automatically removed from the vines and thereafter are processed in a conventional manner.
The harvester, in operation, travels along a row of vines which are cut from their root systems and are fed onto the conveyor. Movement of the vines on the conveyor are, in general, confined to a central portion thereof because of the central location of the cutter means. However, it is desirable to spread the vines substantially across the width of the conveyor, as they approach the upper rear end thereof, for discharge into the tomato removal shaker chamber of the harvester.
Therefore, one of the principal objects of the present invention is to provide means to distribute the cut vines across a major portion of the conveyor prior to their discharge onto a shaker means within an interior harvester chamber.
A further object of the invention is to provide a pair of cooperating, rearwardly diverging driven conveyor chains with pluralities of spaced apart outwardly projecting fingers disposed in positions to engage the tomato vines on the upper rearward end portion of the chain belt conveyor, and to spread the vines across the belt conveyor in direct relation to the diverging relationship of the conveyor chains.
A further object of the invention is to provide means to individually adjust the positioning of each of the conveyor chains relative to its vertical position above the chain belt conveyor, as well as the lateral spacing between the two conveyor chains and the angular relationship therebetween.